Sunday, January 3, 2016

Kentucky opened Southeastern Conference play Saturday night with a convincing 83-61 win over Mississippi in Rupp Arena.

The Wildcats were led by an outstanding performance by sophomore point guard Tyler Ulis. Ulis finished with 20 points, 10 assists and 6 steals in the win. It was the first 20-point, 10-assist game by a Wildcat since John Wall vs. Rider on November 21, 2009.

After the game, Ole Miss head coach Andy Kennedy praised Ulis.

"I think he is the best point guard in college basketball," Kennedy said. "He just kind of skates through. When he is making shots, he is very difficult (to defend)."

Jamal Murray added 18 points and 6 rebounds for the Wildcats (11-2, 1-0 SEC). Marcus Lee, who was sporting a protective face mask, chipped in 13 points and 8 boards. Skal Labissiere played some of his best basketball in recent weeks and finished with 9 points and 3 rebounds in 14 minutes of action.

Ole Miss (10-3, 0-1) was led by 23 points from Stefan Moody. Sebastian Saiz added 12 points for the Rebels.

Last season, Moody and the Rebels took Kentucky to overtime before losing 89-86.

"We lost a lot of guys that were part of that run," Kennedy said. "I thought the moment might have been a little big for them early."Kentucky returns to action Tuesday night with a difficult road game at LSU. That game will tip off at 9:00 p.m. and will be aired on ESPN.